C1160 The Fall of the Elephant God

The Great Demon God Grec, possessing the Titan, seized the Golden Elephant God by the neck and forced him into the blood lake. As the Golden Elephant God struggled in midair, his massive hooves thrashed desperately. His demon energy transformed into innumerable golden blades and bolts of lightning, yet they were futile against the Titan. This Titan, too, had been of the tenth level bloodline before its demise and had never once diminished in rank. It was stronger, if not equal, to him.

Now, with Grec's possession and the support of the entire Primal Blood Continent, the Titan was unable to regain its former combat prowess, yet it came infinitely close to the might of a tenth level bloodline expert from beyond the Everlands. With a splash, the colossal form of the Golden Elephant God plunged into the crimson lake. The boiling, thick blood engulfed him, while swarms of Blood Fiends, like locusts, invaded his body, consuming his flesh and gnawing at his bones.

Bubbles of blood burst forth, and within them, new Blood Fiends slowly took shape, seemingly born from the flesh and blood of the Golden Elephant God. Moreover, the already powerful Blood Fiends, after feasting on his flesh, experienced successive breakthroughs in their bloodline levels!

The Golden Elephant God let out a mournful bellow, sending towering columns of energy erupting from the blood lake. As his demon blood drained and his flesh dissolved, the ultimate truths he had grasped clashed with the rules of the Primal Blood Continent, igniting the surface of the lake with fiery splashes and tumultuous waves. The disturbance he caused was far greater than that of the King of Wraiths, for he had once been an entity that ascended to the rank of Dark Deity.

His Demon Heart, resplendent like a sun forged from pure gold, shone through the blood, its radiance undimmed even from within the depths of the lake. Grec let out a soft, mocking laugh as a bizarre blood-colored vortex emerged in the lake's depths, swallowing the golden Demon Heart like a gaping maw.

Yu Yuan sensed the presence of the Root of the Solar Meridian within the vortex. "Old Elephant, oh Old Elephant, your day has come at last!" Munch exclaimed with a satisfied grin, standing at the mountain's peak with three imposing blood bound slaves behind him. He spoke with smug satisfaction, "I've longed to kill this old elephant for years but never had the chance. Heh, he was too audacious, daring to come to the Primal Blood Continent seeking his own demise."

Affo, previously in the guise of a blood bat, transformed into a diminutive old man and perched on the shoulder of the towering Titan. Despite the Titan's immense stature, Affo was barely noticeable there.

"Patriarch, we must preserve the demon soul," Affo called out, drawing the attention of Yu Yuan, Chen Qinghuang, Tan Junshan, and others.

"Lord Golden Elephant is done for," Tan Junshan lamented as he joined Chen Qinghuang in the Deathwing Lair, his face etched with remorse. "We are to blame for his downfall, as well as that of the King of Wraiths."

Had they not ventured into the Shattered Star of the Shadow Husk, had they not incited the surge of power from the Devil Palace and Shadow's Keep, it would never have reached so deeply into the Primal Blood Continent.

Now, with the King of Wraiths dead and the Golden Elephant God on the brink of extinction, the remaining powerhouses from the Devil Palace and Shadow's Keep, save for Yu Zhu, had been eradicated by the Blood Fiend. Cao Yi had been reduced to a blood bound slave under Grec.

It was an absolute disaster.

Chen Qinghuang, her ethereal beauty almost surreal, sighed deeply at these words. "With the Demon Heart dissolved and refined, the road to Lord Golden Elephant's rebirth is severed. Even if the demon soul remains, even if it could be reclaimed in the future, he would have to start anew."

"I request the Great Elephant's demon soul," Munch implored, casting a cylindrical vessel toward the blood-red lake from the mountain's peak. "Patriarch, with this old elephant's demon soul and the resources I possess, I can forge yet another fierce blood bound slave!"

"It's yours," Grec declared with a narrowed smile from within the Titan's chest cavity. He gestured to the cylindrical vessel floating in the crimson lake.

The vessel descended gracefully, like a skiff sinking to the water's surface, and settled at the head of the Golden Elephant God before breaking through the skull to enter.

"Thank you, Patriarch!" Munch expressed his gratitude with a respectful bow, his smile radiating.

Knox, Quealy, and numerous Blood Fiend elders dispersed around the colossal Titan, their gazes fixed on the Great Demon God Grec, brimming with genuine reverence and devotion.

As for Yu Yuan, Chen Qinghuang, and the rest within the Deathwing Lair, they seemed oblivious to their surroundings. The psionic power concealed within the dark red wall was well-known to the clan elders. Knowing that Yu Yuan and his companions couldn't break free, they had little cause for concern.

"Master..." Yu Yiyi, who had transformed the Crucible of Evil into armor, now knelt on one knee behind Yu Yuan, her head deeply bowed in a gesture of deference. She seemed unable to face the Yu Yuan of the present, her voice a whisper meant only for him, "Please, Master, truly awaken."

Her shoulders shook with the weight of her emotions, her slender form quivering with a mix of sorrow, guilt, and a faint glimmer of hope. Yu Zhu, Chen Qinghuang, and Tan Junshan watched her with puzzled expressions, unsure of what was unfolding before them.

Yu Yuan, whose body was no longer stained with blood, slowly turned and looked down at Yu Yiyi, who knelt in the void, her head bowed, communicating only through the silent voice of her heart. Yu Yuan immediately understood her actions. She was aware of the dire situation they faced; without a monumental shift in circumstances, none of them would escape the clutches of the Blood Fiend.

She was imploring Yu Yuan to embrace the self from his first life, to allow the consciousness of that past self to awaken. That individual was her original master, the forger and wielder of the Dragon Slaying Stage, once the mightiest force in the Everlands.

Yu Yiyi yearned for the Yu Yuan of the first era to take command of the transformed Dragon Slaying Stage and carve a path of survival through the Primal Blood Continent.

"It's just that..." A bitter taste filled Yu Yuan's mouth. To embrace that former self would render the current Yu Yuan, now Hong Qi of the second life, utterly without purpose. His very existence might be erased, much like the memories and wisdom of the Great Demon God Grec, which had altered him profoundly when they merged during his youth. And this change could be even more irreversible.

"There's no other choice," Yu Yiyi murmured, her head still lowered as if she were softly weeping. Her mind was flooded with memories, scenes from their time in the Embers Sea, where she had stood by Yu Yuan's side, witnessing his growth and their shared ascent to power.

She could awaken, recall her forgotten memories, refine a new demonform, and emerge from the world within the Crucible of Evil—all thanks to Yu Yuan in this life.

Deep within her heart, she yearned for Yu Yuan, after reaching the pinnacle of the cosmos, to embrace the self from her first life.

In doing so, Yu Yuan would remain himself, enriched by an additional set of memories and life experiences, rather than being erased entirely.

"I wish so much to stay by your side in this way," Yu Yiyi whispered to herself, her inner monologue tinged with sorrow and resignation. "I don't yearn for your past self to return. Because the you before me now, this version of you, is so much more endearing."

Her frame shook with greater intensity as she spoke of that other version of him.

As a maid, as the guarder of the Dragon Slaying Stage, she harbored a bone-deep terror of that individual.

Fear and awe intertwined within her, indistinguishable in their dominance, yet devoid of any genuine love or heartfelt closeness.

Yu Yuan was a tumult of emotions, his body rigid, standing there bewildered and at a loss.

With the awakening of the Will of the Root of the Solar Meridian, the Demon God Grec was resurrected, inhabiting a tenth-level Titan. Alongside him stood Munch, Affo, Knox, Quealy, and a legion of Blood Fiend elites.

The barrier remained impenetrable.

They faced certain death; their current might and numbers spelled doom without a miracle.

The King of Wraiths had fallen, as had the Golden Elephant God. Tan Junshan and Chen Qinghuang were merely peers of the Golden Elephant God.

"If truly there's no retreat..." he sighed deeply, gazing at the kneeling Yu Yiyi, torn between resignation and resistance, contemplating surrender.

As he teetered on the brink of decision, the ethereal Chen Qinghuang placed her hand lightly on his shoulder. "You were my invitee; let me handle this."

Yu Yuan was taken aback.

...